JPH1042063A - Method and device for obtaining reply to questionnaire by facsimile equipment - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To allow a client to make a question to a host server anonymously. SOLUTION: When a client accesses a host server in the telephone mode and sends a numeral corresponding to a question, the host server informs a reception number to a facsimile telephone set of the client in voice. When the client selects its own password optionally and sends the password in dial tone, the host server stores the password and the reception number in pairs. Then the client selects the facsimile mode and sends a questionnaire to the host server. The host server stores the questionnaire in cross reference to the password and the reception number, reads the questionnaire after the line is interrupted and generates a reply sheet and stores it in cross reference to the password and the reception number. Upon the receipt of a reply request from the facsimile telephone set of the client, the host server reads the reply sheet in cross reference to the password and the reception number after confirming the password and sends the reply sheet to the facsimile equipment of the client.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a method and an apparatus for obtaining an answer to a question by facsimile, and more particularly to a method and an apparatus for obtaining an answer anonymously using a communication line.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art There is a curiosity of a customer or a quirky one in a customer's mind. Anyone who has a psychology who wants to ask various questions freely within the limits of each other easily and irresponsibly I have. They evolve into real interests,
It's about buying and seeing, and it's a starting point for action. However, conventionally, on the seller's side, customers who have caught anyway have become push-like products, such as keeping them aggressive until they buy them, and at present, there is no affordable selling method in social life.

For example, when entering a shop at a tourist spot or a street in a town,
He asked a loud voice what he wanted to do, and he was surprised to have come out of the store without looking at the goods. Also, when I consulted over the phone for health, I was asked a lot about my address, name, age, family, and so on, and I was disgusted, and I wasn't happy anymore, and I often didn't get any answers.

[0004]

[Problems to be solved by the invention] For example, if you are traveling abroad and enter an unusual shop, you will be asked various questions about various products, what, what to use, what is going on. And by glimpsing the state of another world,
Feel happiness and enjoy traveling. In everyday life,
If you don't know what you care about, you're not serious, but what you want to know is happening every day and it's gone.
Firm tax consultation, traffic counseling consultation, outdoor sports consultation, golf start consultation, marriage consultation, married couple consultation,
There are endless consultations on continuing human life, such as job seeking consultations, but the reality is that you do not know where to ask what. On the other hand, various academic societies and companies that provide services have demands to accept a variety of questions from customers without causing any burden on customers. An object of the present invention is to provide an anonymous answer system in which a predetermined question telephone number is advertised in a magazine or the like and a question and an answer are notified free of charge.

[0005]

According to the present invention, a fax telephone accesses a host server having a known line number in a telephone mode in a telephone mode, and the host server receives a reception number which is a number corresponding to a question and a number corresponding to an answer. Require a fax call by voice to enter one. When a question-answering number is sent from a fax telephone, the host server notifies the fax telephone of the receipt number by voice. After the fax telephone confirms the reception number, the personal identification number is transmitted to the host server, and the host server stores the password and the reception number as a set. The host server voice requests the fax phone to switch to facsimile mode, and sends a query from the fax phone in facsimile mode to the host server. The host server stores the questionnaire in combination with the personal identification number and the reception number, and disconnects the connection between the facsimile telephone and the host server. The host server reads the questionnaire and creates an answer, and stores the answer in combination with the password and the reception number. The host server is accessed from the facsimile telephone, and the reception number is sent to the host server. The host server receives the reception number and requests the facsimile telephone to input a password by voice. The personal identification number is transmitted from the fax telephone, and the personal identification number received by the host server is compared with the personal identification number. If the passwords match each other, the host server reads out the answer sheet in which the password and the reception number are combined, and makes a voice call to the facsimile telephone to switch to the facsimile mode. After the fax telephone is in the facsimile mode, the reply letter is sent from the host server to the fax telephone.

[0006]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. Embodiment 1 of the Invention In FIG. 3, one of the communication lines 2 has a home or office fax telephone 1 and the other has a telephone line.
The host servers 3 of the base stations provided at remote locations are connected to each other. The facsimile telephone 1 is a commercially available device in which a telephone and a facsimile function selectively by mode switching, and both can be switched by pressing a mode button.

The questionnaire 15 is, for example, a questionnaire cut out from a recruiting employment magazine, and is input to the facsimile telephone 1. An example of the questionnaire 15 is shown in FIG. 5. For easy understanding by the user, the telephone number of the host server 3, 03-5802-0039, and the like are clearly indicated, and entry fields for a password and a reception number to be referred to at the time of communication are also provided. Have been. This phone number is a public, free question center.

[0008] The host server 3 is installed at the expense of businesses of various companies, various academic societies, occupational consultants, mail-order sales and service providers. For example, if you want to recruit mid-career employees, a one-on-one telephone call is time-consuming and labor-intensive, and you may not be able to provide detailed explanations. In such a case, the company places the questionnaire sheet 15 on the magazine in advance, and the applicant cuts out and uses it. The applicant responds to each column of this questionnaire, and the company evaluates and determines the answer, which is used as a reference for mental preparation during interviews, and provides mental preparation and reference items for application.

In FIG. 3, one fax telephone 1 is shown for the sake of explanation. However, the host server 3 can be connected to a large number of mutually independent customers and clients of the fax telephone 1 subscribed to the communication line 2. The host server 3 includes a central processing unit CPU5. The CPU5 includes a modem 4, a RAM7, a first ROM8, a second ROM9, a magnetic storage device HD10, a keyboard 11, a display device 12, a printing device 13, an automatic reading device OCR16, and an audio generation device 17. Are connected via a bus 6.

The first ROM 8 and the second ROM 9 are constituted by flash ROMs, and tasks and programs can be changed according to the purpose. The OCR 16, the CPU 5, and the modem 4 constitute a facsimile apparatus. The RAM 7 and the HD 10 are storage devices for storing data. The CPU 5 performs various operations, and thus functions as a comparison device.

Table 1 is for the first ROM 8, and Table 2 is for the second ROM.
9 shows the details of the memory table configuration indicating the contents of No. 9 respectively. FIG. 3 shows a registration area 20 in the HD 10, which has an area for storing a question letter and an answer letter which are a combination of a password and a reception number, and has an empty area of only the reception number.

In each of the addresses in Tables 1 and 2, the part displayed in the format of "... #" indicates that the data in "" is converted into voice data by the voice generator 17 and the others are literal. This is an instruction to execute. Note that the data in "" are omitted in Tables 1 and 2. The instruction at each address in Table 1 has a flag, and when execution is completed, the flag is set.
Set to 1.

Table 1: 1st memory table address reception task, program flag 1 call “8 # or reception number #, or 0001 #” 1 2 8 # use the same memory table, “memo paper, #” 13 # reception number Read out cccc, "1234 #, or 7 #" 04 # "desired PIN #" 05 xxxx # xxxx, "5678 #, or 7 #" 06 # 1234 5678, "Fax, start" 0 7 Start Reception mode, printing 0 8 7 # To address 3 or 5 of F = 0 0 9 cccc # To second memory table 0 10 0001 # "Fax mode" Paper transmission 0

The instruction at each address in Table 2 has a counter, and counts how many times the instruction has been executed.

Table 2: Second memory table address reception task, program counter 1 cccc --- preparation, "cccc #, or 7 #" 2 # read response data, "xxxx #" 3 xxxx #cccc .... and xxxx Correction goes to 4; Wrong goes to 3 2 4 "Reception OK, Fax, Start" 5 Start reply transmission 6 "Error" Disconnection 7 7 # To 1st address in 1st memory table 8 "Incorrect password" To 2

The operation of the present invention will be described with reference to the flowcharts of FIGS. When there is an outgoing call (incoming call) from the fax telephone 1 to the host server 3 via the communication line 2 and the modem 4, the CPU 5 detects the outgoing call signal and corresponds to the first ROM 8 in FIG. 1 in the memory table
The task program is read from the address and the flow starts. First, in step S1, voice data "8 #, reception number #, 0001 #" is read from address 1, and these are converted into voice signals by the voice generation device 17, and the modem 4,
The fax is sent to the fax telephone 1 via the communication line 2.

From the handset of the fax telephone 1 "This is the consultation center. If you want to send a questionnaire (question), you need to get the number 8 and the symbol #, if you want to receive an answer, you need the reception number and #, and you want to take out the questionnaire form Is 0001
Press # and # "from the handset of fax phone 1.

Questionnaire 15 cut out from a job magazine
Is dirty or extra, enter "0001 and #", and when the facsimile telephone 1 is in the facsimile mode, the host server 3 transmits the questionnaire form 15. The questionnaire 15 can be stored in the HD 10 of the host server 3 and programmed in advance so as to be transmitted.
1 and # "may be set to different numbers.

In step S2, the customer receives a fax telephone 1
When the numerals 8 and # are input from the dial of, the incoming call is "8 #" in the host server 3. Therefore, reading of the first memory table is at address 2, and a series of operations is performed in the first memory table.
Stay in the memory table and proceed to step S3, and sound the voice from the handset, saying, "Are you ready for the memo, please press # if it is OK". If there is no symbol # input for 5 seconds, return to step S3 and say, "Are you ready for the memo? Press # if it is OK."
Repeat several times. If there is no input three or more times, an error sound is emitted at timeout and the communication is disconnected.

When the customer dials the fax telephone 1,
Is input, the first memory table is read out at address 3, the process proceeds to step S4, and the CPU 5 arbitrarily selects, from the registration area 20 in the HD 10, a reception number (for example, 1234) whose password is not recorded into the RAM 7, and Read. When the instruction at each address is executed, a flag 1 is set at the flag position. Then, the reception number is converted into a voice signal by the voice generation device 17, and in step S4, the voice of the facsimile telephone 1 is sounded, for example, "Reception number is one, two, three, four, four".

In step S5, the telephone of the facsimile telephone 1 emits a voice saying, "Is it OK? Press # if it is OK, or press the numbers 7 and # if it is confirmed again." In step S6, when the customer inputs # from the dial, the first memory table is read at addresses 3 and 4, but at address 3, flag 1 is set and address 4 is obtained. In step S7, the telephone of the facsimile telephone 1 sounds "Please press the desired password and #".

In step S8, when the customer inputs a password xxx (for example, 5678) arbitrarily selected and # from the dial, the first memory table is read at address 5. In step S9, the received personal identification number xxxx
Is converted into a voice by the voice generating device 17.
Hey, it's good, it's good, it's good. "

Next, in step S10, the telephone of the facsimile telephone 1 emits a voice saying "Are you sure, press # if it is OK, or press numbers 7 and # if it is input again."

In step S11, the customer enters #
, The reading of the first memory table becomes 3 and 4
And address 6, but after execution, since flag 1 is set at addresses 3 and 4, the program goes to address 6. CPU 5 is HD1 in FIG.
In this example, 1234 and a pair of personal identification numbers 5678 are stored in the registration area 20 in the order of reception numbers in this example.

In step S12, the fax telephone 1 reads, "Load paper in the fax and press the start button or communication button when you hear the signal sound."
Sounds from the handset. When the customer sets the form 15 on which a question has been entered in advance and presses the start button on the dial, the first memory table is read at address 7. The CPU 5 puts the modem 4 and the HDs 10 and 7 in the receiving mode, and normal fax communication between the fax telephone 1 and the host server 3 is started.

The question data on the paper 15 is sent to the CPU 5 via the modem 4, and the received data is stored in the HD 10 and printed out from the printing device 13 to appear as a questionnaire.

Here, the operation of receiving the questionnaire is completed. Now, the received questionnaire is anonymous and from a magazine subscriber, but no individual is identified. Since the inquirer does not know the name or the telephone number, he can ask a question without troublesome annoying inquiry such as telephone sales.

In steps S6 and S11, when the customer inputs "7" and "#" from the dial, the first memory table is read at address 8, and the instruction jumps to address 3 or 4 where flag 0 is set. It is. The address 3 is stored in step S4 for writing down the correct reception number.
Is read again from the handset of the fax telephone 1. No. 4 is to confirm the PIN
This is the re-input of the "password" in step S9, and is not necessary if it has been confirmed.

After that, the questionnaire is taken out manually, and depending on the contents, the answer is entered by an expert, and for general questions, the answer is entered by computer judgment. Then OCR1
6 is automatically read and the registration area 20 of the HD 10
Are stored as Q & A in the order of the reception number, and the system waits for an answer request from the customer.

The existence and affiliation of the answer sheet stored in the registration area 20 of the HD 10 in the order of the reception number (including the personal identification number) is known only to the person who sent the questionnaire from the facsimile telephone 1, so the answer was answered again. Experts do not know where they belong, so they exist without anyone knowing. Anonymous questions,
Facilitate mental and financial burden on both the questioner and the respondent, such as easy-going questions, whimsical questions of the consumer before seriously asking something, and triggering actions before starting something It will be.

The operation of a customer who has already sent a questionnaire to receive an answer will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. In step S2 in FIG. 1, when the reception number, for example, "1234" received in step S4 at the time of the previous inquiry and # are input from the dial, the first memory table is read at address 9. Since the program there refers to the second memory table in Table 2, the CPU 5 thereafter executes the second memory table.
Move to address 1 of the memory table.

The CPU 5 reads out the item of the reception number (including the personal identification number) 12345678 in the registration area 20 of the HD 10. Step A of FIG. 1 to step S2 of FIG.
13 and in step S13, for example, the fax telephone 1 says, "The reception number is 1, 2, 3
Sounds from the handset.

In step S14, the telephone of the facsimile telephone 1 emits a voice saying, "Are you sure, press # if it is OK, or press the numbers 7 and # if it is input again."

In step S15, the customer sets #
Is input, address 2 is read from the second memory table. Proceeding to step S16, the CPU 5 reads the answer sheet of the Q & A from the registration area 20 of the HD 10 onto the RAM 7, and prepares for transmission.

In step S17, the telephone of the facsimile telephone 1 sounds "Please press the designated password and #". Thereafter, in step S18, when the customer inputs a personal identification number from the dial, for example, the numbers 5678 and # registered in the previous step S8, the second memory table is read at address 3. The CPU 5 checks the received password 5678 against the password (1234) 5678 of the registration number in the registration area 20 of the HD 10. Here, the value of the counter is increased for each collation.

If the password numbers match, the flow goes to address 4 as it is, and the flow advances to step S20 to sound "received" from the receiver. In step S21, a voice is sounded from the handset, saying, "Send a fax, if you hear a signal tone, press the start button or the communication button and then hang up the handset."

In step S22, when the customer presses the start button, the customer goes to address 5, and the CPU 5 of the host server 3 sends the Q & A data in the RAM 7 to the fax telephone 1 via the modem 4 and the communication line 2.

If the "password" does not match in step S18, the program jumps to address 8 and in step S19 "
Sounds wrong from handset. "CP
U5 returns from address 8 to address 2 and sounds the sound of the "password" input in step S17.

If the "password" is re-entered, the collation in step S18 is repeated. When the counter value becomes 3 or more, the address goes to address 6, sounds an "error" sound, and disconnects the communication. If the numbers 7 and # are input in step S15, the process returns to address 1 of the first memory table and starts from step S1.

The customer's fax telephone 1 receives the answer sheet of the Q & A, and the customer can easily receive the answer from the expert to the question. A large number of applicants answered each section of this questionnaire, and after responding, they prepared their minds when applying, while the company evaluated and determined the distribution and tendency of the answers. Use for questions. At that time, customers can send only questions and get answers anonymously for free at a later date.

The provider of the host server secures a place for promotion, expands the promotion by cooperating with the consumer in solving the problem,
Customers can ask any question without worrying about the hassle. The questioner does not specify the individual as "Yamada" or the like, but can ask the expert with the unknown "X". Contribute to the modern market where you want to ask such questions.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a flowchart of an operation for receiving a questionnaire in a method of obtaining an answer to a question by facsimile according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a flowchart of an operation of sending an answer letter in the method of obtaining an answer to a question by facsimile according to the present invention.

FIG. 3 is an overall block diagram of an apparatus for obtaining an answer to a question by facsimile according to the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a memory configuration of a registration area of the magnetic storage device of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an example of a question sheet according to the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Fax telephone 2 Communication line 3 Host server 4 Modem 5 CPU 6 Bus 7 RAM 8 First ROM 9 First ROM 10 HD 11 Keyboard 12 Display device 13 Printing device 15 Paper 16 OCR 17 Sound generator

Claims (2)

[Claims] 1. Accessing a host server of a line number known in advance from a fax telephone in a telephone mode, and inputting one of a number corresponding to a question and a number corresponding to an answer by the host server. Requesting a fax call to the fax phone, sending the question-answering number from the fax phone to the host server, notifying the fax phone of the receipt number by the host server, and the fax phone confirming the receipt number. Transmitting the desired password to the host server, and after the host server confirms the password, storing the password in combination with the reception number, and transmitting the fax data to the fax telephone in the facsimile mode. Voice request to switch, and host from fax phone in facsimile mode Sending a questionnaire to the server, storing the questionnaire in the host server in combination with the personal identification number and accession number, disconnecting the fax telephone from the host server, Reading the questionnaire and preparing an answering letter, storing the answering letter in combination with the password and the accession number, accessing the host server from a fax telephone, and sending the accession number to the host server After the host server confirms the receipt number, requesting the fax telephone to input a personal identification number by voice; transmitting the personal identification number from the fax telephone to the host server; and a personal identification number received by the host server. Is compared with the password, and if these passwords match each other, the host server determines whether the password and the reception number Reading the completed reply letter and requesting the fax phone to switch to the facsimile mode by voice, and sending the reply letter from the host server to the fax phone after the fax phone enters the facsimile mode. How to get answers to questions by facsimile consisting of: 2. An apparatus comprising: a facsimile telephone having a facsimile function and a telephone call function; and a host server connected by a communication line and capable of transferring the facsimile telephone and facsimile data and voice data. A voice generating device for sending voice data to a telephone, a storage device for storing data to be transferred to and from the fax telephone, and a number data to be transferred to and from the fax telephone. A facsimile apparatus for obtaining an answer to a question, comprising: a facsimile apparatus for transmitting facsimile data to the facsimile telephone according to the coincidence signal.